Friday-before-Labor-Day-Weekend, where are you!?! I don't know about you Badasses, but this week is crawling by far too slowly. This weekend ushers in a day off work, college football kickoffs, and wishful thinking for weather cool enough that I can bust out my brown suede boots. (September in the Panhandle of Florida is the cruelest month of all...)
To speed this week along, I present to you Badass soldiers a tried-and-true tactic: Move that Badass a little faster, and hope the clock follows along. Yep, why not kill an hour or so with a Badass-kicking workout that challenges you from head to toe- and makes you temporarily forget that it's not a close to the weekend as you'd like.
I'll be doing this one today with a client, so join us from wherever you are out in Badass-land!
You'll need a Resist-a-Ball, Gliders (or paper plates), a 10-pound set of kettlebells or dumbbells, a long resistance band (or dumbbells), and a short resistance band. Go through this entire circuit in the order shown, and then repeat two more times - or once more if you're time-crunched!
Hump Day Head-to-Toe Badass Buster
1. Cardio jumps: Put the ball between your legs, gripping it with the inner part of your lower legs. Jump up and down, for a total of 30 seconds, keeping the grip on the ball.
2. Side squats with resistance band: Place a short band around your ankles, and step the feet apart about six inches or until you feel tension. That's your starting point. Now take 10 little steps wider to the right, never letting the tension get lighter than where you started. After 10 steps, squat low for 20 reps, keeping the band taut, and then take 10 steps back to the left.
3. Gliding Mountain Climbers: Do a 30-second to 45-second mountain climber, placing your toes on the Gliders or paper plates. Pull your knees, one at a time, into your chest, at a steady faster-than-you'd-like pace.
4. Side Biceps "21s": Step on the center of the band with right foot, and grab one end of the band in each hand. Rotate your hands out to the sides and, starting with arms raised to the point where you just start to feel the biceps engage. Now curl it up, sideways, to 90 degrees for 7 reps. Pause. Now, for 7 reps, start at the 90-degree mark and curl up to the top. For the last 7 reps, curl from the point where you just start to feel the biceps engage all the way to the top, with control.
5. Side glute lift: Grab a stable pole or weight machine and place a short resistance band around your ankles. Keep the right foot plated on the floor and pull your left foot out to the side until you feel tension. That's your starting point. Now lift the left foot out and up, leading with the side of the foot. You should feel the burn in your left outer thigh and glute. Do 20 reps, then switch and do the same on the right side.
7. Pushups: Hands are slightly wider than shoulder width apart, and feet are about six inches apart or side by side. Keep your gaze slightly in front of you (no bowed heads!), and slowly lower down with control. When your chest gets close to the floor, your thumbs should be right at your chest line. (Try to do as many of these as you can boy-style, knees off the ground, as shown at left. When you fatigue, drop to your knees but keep going until you finish a total of 20 reps.)
8. Hamstring curls: Lay down on a mat, chest side up. Put your feet up on the ball, positioning it so that your calves are on top of the ball and your toes are flexed with toes pointed up to the ceiling. Now lift your hips and keep them raised as you user your hamstrings to roll the ball in toward your Badass. With control, and with hips raised, roll it back out. That's one rep. Do 20 reps.
9. 50 jumping jacks
10. Ball plank: Position your forearms on top of the ball, and your core and legs behind the ball in a plank position. Get steady, and hold the position for 10 seconds. Lift the right leg for 10 seconds; lower and lift the left leg for 10 seconds. Hold the core tight, belly button pulled in toward the spine, as you hold it for another 30 seconds.
Coming Friday: Your Badass Tailgate Survival (and Hangover Removal) Guide!
